Hollyday vs Christmas
by Suncreeper
Summary: Team Shii is on a mission in New York, and the turtle brothers are having fun in their first time out in the snow. As the holiday season is coming up, two hotheads from both sides end up facing each other with how they think the holiday should be called. How are they going to solve it? (Sequel to Blue Mask and Red Flame. RaphaelxOC, 2012 version.)
1. Chapter 1

Suncreeper again :). If you've been paying attention, then yes I'm putting up my second fanfic just after starting my first one. You will soon see, though, how those two will tie up. I want to write them at the same time though because I'm just bursting full with ideas for them and, AND: It's summer vacation! I'll have (almost all) the time in the world, mwahahahahaha!

...Ahem. This story will feature Tien, another one of rubyhardflame's OCs (Ahnnie's little sister) with her Konoha team. There will also be some Rise of the Guardians characters in it so don't be too surprised (it is a Christmas story, after all). I just love writing about this holiday, no matter whether summer or spring or fall ^^. Anyways, Tien is obviously different from Ahnnie. No two sisters can be alike, after all. She is more hot-tempered and straightforward as well as rebellious. Unlike the other story, which is going to be kind of dramatic and sad-ish, this story is going to be on the jolly-angry side. Doesn't mean there _won't _be sadness or drama in it but...well in short, it's going to be a lighter story than the other. 'Cause, you know, I kind of picture Ahnnie as the more serious and tragic one...Tien, on the other hand, is the ray of (burning hot-to-death) sunshine :D!

(This story takes place after Blue Mask and Red Flame but will not exactly spoil anything, by the way.)

You will also see that Tien and her teammates call Christmas, "Hollyday." Ruby told me that the three siblings (Ahnnie, Tien, TB (a little brother)) made the word up to avoid saying "CHRIST-mas" because they aren't Christian, they're Buddhist. But they still believe in the holiday because Santa is real and they primarily believe in him; they've met him several times in the North Pole on their adventures and seeing as he wasn't leaning towards any religion in particular, decided he was ok (this is in her stories, doesn't have anything to do with real-life values and beliefs, please do not be offended). So they took a play on the world "Holiday" and taking into consideration the sprigs of holly used to decorate households at Christmastime, turned it into "Hollyday". And since the inhabitants of the Naruto world did not know about Christmas beforehand, when they met the siblings they simply copied off from what they heard.

**Again, I will be setting this in the 2012 universe. So please, enjoy and review~!**

* * *

It was a dark and stormy night.

Well, not exactly.

It was a dark and snowy night.

New York City at this time of year is absolutely freezing. Snowstorms, sleet, frozen rain, frost, ice, hail, slush...you name it. But its inhabitants are used to it, having lived year in year out through such seasonal turns for most of their lives. Only newcomers to the state from down South would not adjust with it as smoothly. Only newcomers and...turtles.

Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo in particular.

Of course, they had been residents of New York City (or, more correctly, the City's sewers) for about fifteen years already. But for at least fourteen of those years, they were limited to a life primarily in the sewers. When they first surfaced at fifteen, they had no idea about the outside world and the forces of nature. And so once the earth's clock ticked over to the wintry season...boy, were they surprised.

"THE WORLD IS ENDING!" Michelangelo yelped when he peeked out of the manhole to check the situation for another one of their nightly escapades. He quickly fell back down, refusing to go up again. His eyes were wide with fear.

His brothers stared at him in confusion. All of them were dressed for cold weather (even if it was only strap-on padded armor plus a scarf, pair of boots, and a hat; do you honestly think they could fit real clothes over their shells!?), as they had been noticing since fall that the surface was getting colder. April reassured them that this was a natural process, a result of the Earth's tilting on its axis as it rotated, and things would soon be back to normal again come spring. But the brothers had never seen snow before. They'd heard of it, seen it on TV several times...but as people say, seeing the thing and experiencing it in real life are two totally different things.

"Geez louise, Mikey, what could be so horrible?" Raphael grumbled. "It's just a little cold, it won't kill you."

"But, but, but," Michelangelo stuttered. "You haven't seen it...it's the worst!"

"Well, what is it?" Donatello asked. "We'll never know if you don't tell us."

"Yes, Mikey, just calm down," Leonardo coaxed him.

That was what Michelangelo did, and he took a deep breath to do so. "Ok. So." He looked seriously at his brothers. "It's all white up there. Nothing but white. I think the city's been erased."

"..."

"Seriously, guys! I'm sure of it!"

"Whatever you say," Raphael said with a smirk on his face. "The city's been erased...Oh come on, Mikey, what else can you come up with?" He started pushing up the manhole and climbed to the surface. When he did, that smirk was wiped off his face.

Leo, Don, and Mikey came up after him.

"Whoa," Leonardo breathed. "It really _is _white..."

Raphael looked around left and right. "What happened to the street lights? Why are they all turned off? And...what is this stuff?"

"See, Mikey," Donatello started explaining, "the city really _isn't _erased but just covered by snow; and that is what 'this stuff' is, Raphael. The whiteness effect is heightened by the lack of street lights, which would have made it orange instead of white. I believe a snowstorm blew out the area's electricity, and it is currently experiencing what is called: a blackout."

"Oh," Michelangelo said. He blinked several times and then started rubbing his arms up and down. "Gee...it is a little colder than last night..."

"Well it's the first snow of the city, and snow is generally frozen clusters of water, so if you combine that with already cold air then-"

"Yeah, yeah, we get it, Mr. Science!" Raphael interrupted him.

Donatello frowned. "You could at least let me finish my sentence!"

Leonardo flashed them both an annoyed look. "Are you two going to stand there and argue for the whole night?"

"No," they both replied in unison.

"Then let's get moving!" And he quickly leapt up onto the roof of a building.

His brothers decided not to dilly-dally any longer and followed him up. They began to do their usually roof-hopping that they did almost every night; but this night was different in that, everywhere they stepped, their boots sank into the puffy, crunchy white substance known as snow. The fifth time it happened, Raphael actually tripped in a clod of particularly deep snow and fell face-down into all that coldness.

"Yaaaarrgggh!" he yelled out in frustration. His voice was partly muffled because of the snow.

Leonardo came over to help him. "You all right?"

Raphael pushed him away. "I'm fine! I can get up on my own!" He shook the snow off his head and body. Seeing Michelangelo trying to stifle a giggle, the hot-headed ninja turtle growled and warned him, "Stop laughing at me or you'll regret it."

Mikey immediately looked away and whistled casually.

"We'll just have to be more careful," Donatello said. "Every roof seems to be covered in snow, so..."

Raphael spat out a bit of the frozen stuff from his mouth and wiped it crudely with the back of his wrist. "Hmph! What's so good about this season!? It's all cold and snowy and cold...I actually regret coming out here!" He pulled his hat on a little tighter around his head. "Let's go back to the lair."

"Aw, not so soon," Mikey whined.

"But I'm cold!"

"Then _you_ go," Leonardo suggested. "We don't feel that cold. We can stay."

After a while of some mumbling, grumbling, and thinking, Raphael finally gave in and decided to stay. "Fine," he had ground out. But then shortly afterwards he let out a little _achoo! _

"Are you sure you're going to be all right?" Donatello asked him concernedly.

"Yeah, yeah, I'll be just fine," he assured him.

"Ok..."

The brothers set out again to continue exploring the snow and city, slowly coming to find that the white flakes weren't all that bad. Michelangelo in particular discovered a new game he could play; shell-sledding.

"Weeheeheeee!" he laughed as he slid, on his shell, down a sloping road. "This is fuuuuuuunnnn!"

"Hmph, he looks stupid," Raphael grumbled.

Leo and Donatello watched as Michelangelo came to a spinning stop at the bottom of the road. He was still laughing, gasping for breath in the cold air and releasing clouds of vapor as he did so. They started to become interested.

"I...I think I'll try it," Donatello said.

"What!?" Raphael exclaimed. "You crazy or something?"

But Donnie didn't seem to hear him. He immediately went over to the starting point where Mikey had placed his shell and then laid down to do the same. "Here I go!" he yelled, and then let himself slide down the road. "Woooow! This_ is_ fuuuunn!"

Leonardo was laughing. "I'm coming too!"

"Seriously?" Raphael asked with a groan. But after seeing Leo land at the bottom, with Mikey and Don still down there on their shells, a mischievous smile crossed his face. "You know what? I just thought of an even better game to play."

"What is it?" Mikey asked him from below.

Raphael trotted over and then laid himself shell-down at the sloping point of the road. "Bowling!" he cried out as he pushed off.

"Nooooo!" Leo, Donnie, and Mikey screamed as they saw Raph barreling towards them.

_BAM!_

The world had blacked out for a moment, but then it grew white again as Leonardo, Donatello, and Michelangelo regained their senses.

"Uugggh," Mikey groaned. "Did you have to hit so hard...?"

Raphael was laughing mockingly at all of them as he spun to a stop. "Ahaha! The looks on your faces were priceless! Like a buncha scared little girls!"

"Not funny, Raph," Donatello said as he struggled to stand. He lurched for a moment, catching his mouth. "Oh, I think I'm going to be sick..."

Leonardo sat up, shaking the snow off his head. He found that his hat had fallen off and retrieved it somewhere in the snow. After he put it back on, he sighed and looked up at the sky. Thanks to the blackout, there was an expanse full of stars...

Raphael noticed his distant look and smirked. "Missing your girlfriend already, Leo?"

Leonardo blushed and looked back down onto the ground. "Um...what are you talking about?"

"Yeah, if she stuck around, she could have celebrated Christmas with you!" Mikey suddenly added.

Leonardo blushed even more. "Let's...let's not talk about this right now..."

"Christmas isn't even here yet," Donatello pointed out, "and it's the one good thing about this season that you overlooked, Raphael."

Raphael scoffed. "Bah. Some weird holiday where a fat guy breaks into people's houses and eats their cookies while they're asleep? You think that's _good_?"

"You left out the presents!" Michelangelo reminded him.

Donatello sighed. "The point is, Raph, that Christmas is supposed to be about goodwill and friendship amongst everybody. Santa Claus is just a myth made up to make little kids excited about it."

Mikey leapt up onto his feet, looking excited. "Oohh, I hope we get presents from Santa this year! You think I've been good?"

"No, Mikey, you've been so bad you're gonna get a stocking; no, three; full of coal for this year, and the next," Raphael said sarcastically.

Leonardo elbowed him. "Raph! Don't say that!"

"Pff!" The red-masked turtle turned to walk down the road. "Donnie said so himself. Santa's just a myth. Why shouldn't I say that?"

Just then, a big white van with a suspiciously familiar symbol emerged from right around the corner...

* * *

"Shii and Naku, at Murakami's."

"Kei and Tien, on 37th street."

"Target is on the move...Kei, Tien, trail and report on it."

"Yes, Shii-sensei."

Kei switched off the mic system and nodded his green-highlighted head at Tien. "You heard him, let's go."

"You don't have to tell me twice." She swished her ponytail off her shoulder and leapt ahead to the next rooftop. "Are you coming or not?"

Kei joined her shortly, and with a nod they both continued roof-hopping all the while following the van that they'd been sent to track.

The mission came to them a while ago back in Konoha, when a scientist by the name of Dr. Barlow requested bodyguards for his stay in New York City. The reason was that he felt unsafe with the sudden disappearances of the city's scientists lately, and he was sure that he would be next. So for the meantime Team Shii was granted accommodations at the Barlow residence until Dr. Barlow would leave for Philadelphia. Anything the team could find about who was abducting them, though, would be much appreciated...

...and tonight, they'd just gotten onto a lead, when these strange carbon-copy businessmen suddenly shoved a man; another scientist; into a big white van.

"Target is turning on XXX, XXX street," Tien reported into her mic as she and Kei trailed the vehicle.

Kei sighed, checking his watch. It was around nine. "I wonder what these people want with scientists, anyway," he mumbled under his breath.

Tien shrugged. "Oh, I don't know...maybe they're actually just throwing a big surprise party for them? And they forgot to send invitations?" The tone of her voice was blatantly sarcastic.

Kei frowned. "Come on, Tien...don't you ever think of things seriously?"

"You're saying I'm not being serious?"

"No...well, I mean...they have an ulterior motive, you know."

"Well I know I have one."

Kei was shocked. "What is it?"

"To convince Shii-sensei to get me some hot chocolate once we're done. It's so darn cold out here!"

Her teammate relaxed. "Oh...Should've known you were just joking..."

Tien smirked. "You've been my teammate for three years already. I thought you'd know me by now."

They both chuckled a bit at his slip-up and continued on trailing the van.

Kei could never forget that day three years ago. They were only twelve at the time, with Kei and Naku being fresh graduates out of Konohagakure's Ninja Academy. Tien had never studied at the Ninja Academy, but because of her already innate magic talent, Lady Tsunade allowed her to register as a Konoha citizen and genin-ranked ninja. From there, she met Shii-sensei and the two boys and trained with them as a kunoichi. She mastered most of the basic ninjutsu techniques such as Shadow Clone and Transformation, as well as learning wood style through Shii-sensei, who happened to be distantly related to Senju Hashirama, the First Hokage.

Her main talents lay in the manipulation of the element earth and illusions. Therefore, she was also quite fluent in earth style jutsu and several forms of genjutsu. Kei himself was a wood-styler, having not come from a major clan in the first place and pretty much parroting off of Shii-sensei, whereas Naku was a Waterbender and thus exceled in water style. Compared to them Kei felt a bit like a bumpkin...but as Shii-sensei had always said, everyone had their own uniqueness. They just had to discover it.

A little while later, Kei obviously had something to say.

"Don't you think we should rescue him now? The scientist, I mean."

"Do you think I care?"

"But we can find out who they are if we force them out right now," Kei pointed out.

"But we won't be able to find out where they come from if we don't follow them back to their base," Tien countered. "I think it's worth the loss of one boring, explosive chemical-obsessed scientist."

"Not all scientists are like that."

"But all scientists are boring."

Kei sighed and decided not to argue with her anymore. She was known as the most sarcastic, hot-headed, and outspoken one of the group. He knew she didn't literally mean it, that every single scientist on the face of the planet was boring...it was just the way she worked and expressed herself, that was all. (Although he did have to admit, science bored him out a lot too.)

_It's funny how they're so different, Ahnnie and Tien, _he thought. _Ahnnie's so calm and Tien's so...spunky! And yet, isn't Tien's name supposed to mean "angel"?_

Listening to her speak, he could hardly believe that.

They rounded a bend in the road, still following the van. Nothing particularly special was happening at the moment, and Kei was growing worried for the scientist inside. In a result of that worry, he pressed the button on his mic again and said, "Kei and Tien, trailing the target. Shall we rescue the victim?"

Tien looked at him in incredulity. "What the heck!? Kei!"

Shii-sensei was responding. "Shii and Naku, at Murakami's. Take no action unless necessary. Ask Tien to use a see-through spell or something. Over and out."

"Wha...!?" Tien exclaimed. "Sensei! Sensei!" But it was too late; he had already switched off his intercom for now. "Uggh!" she groaned. "What's with people who don't understand magic? Just 'cause I have it doesn't mean I can do _everything_! 'See-through spell'? Seriously? I'm not a Hyuga!"

Kei shook his head. "Forget it. Let's just keep moving."

And so they did. Hopping from roof to roof, following the van, just as they had for minutes now. Snow began to fall.

"Oh geez," Tien huffed. "That just _had _to happen."

Kei shrugged. "The only one who's having fun with this weather is Naku."

"Yeah...he was raised in the Northern Water Tribe."

Suddenly the mic came on again. It was Naku's voice this time. "Shii-sensei and Naku, moving out on XXX boulevard. Meeting you soon."

Tien answered the mic. "Kei and Tien, trailing the target. What, did you figure out something?"

"No, we're going to be at a distance but still close enough to give you reinforcement."

"Ok, got it. Over and out." She sighed when the mic went off again. "Well, Shii-sensei finally decides to drag his lazy butt out into the field...I feel so touched."

Kei smirked. "Knowing him, he just finished a bowl of ramen or something. Naku too, that lucky duck..."

Just then, the van turned around a corner and skidded to a squealing stop. Alarmed, Tien and Kei looked at each other once before hopping to the nearest roof to see what was happening. They were able to hide themselves behind a mound of snow, where they could spy on the scene without themselves being seen.

It was a little too dark to make out the shapes below. The streets had been in a blackout for awhile now so-

"Oh wait a second," Tien said, suddenly remembering. "Shii-sensei couldn't have been having any ramen if the power was out. I mean, I know Murakami's blind but..."

"Shh!" Kei shushed her. "Not now!"

-the snow was the only illumination, being white enough to give off some form of visibility. Lucky Kei had brought binoculars, and was taking them out of his pouch to use them. As he adjusted the scope, Tien gave him a rough tap on the shoulder.

"Hey. What do you see?" she asked.

"Well, what do _you _see?" he countered. "I think you can tell how many people are down there even from your distance."

He could hear her give out a frustrated sigh. "Ok, fine, I see four blocky idiots to the side of the van," she snapped. "There. You happy now? So tell me what you see! We're supposed to be teammates, you know."

"Wait, wait..."

Kei was beginning to wonder whether it was his eyesight or the binoculars that had gotten bad. True to Tien's word, there were four blocky-looking people down there. But they seemed a bit _too _blocky for people...

"So?" Tien was growing impatient.

"I said wait!"

As he adjusted the view one more time, Kei tried his best to scrutinize the figures down below into recognizable shapes. "Man, if only they'd get into the van's light," he mumbled to himself.

The van was suddenly backing up. That wasn't exactly granting Kei's wish, but he had a feeling the people inside were going to try and make a run for it; that, or hit the four blocky figures down. _A hit and run, huh?_

After the van had backed away some distance, the both of them heard the gas being applied rather heavily to the vehicle as it _whrrred _angrily and started rushing for the four blocks. In that span of time, the car's headlights shone brightly upon the objects of its vendetta. And when that happened, Kei almost dropped his binoculars in surprise.

"T..." Tien was stuttering. He could tell she'd seen them too. "Turtles!? Those four idiots...were _turtles_!?"

"Walking, life-sized turtles!" Kei added incredulously.

"And I thought those brain-obsessed illithids from Drizzt's world were weird!" Tien remarked.

They would only be further surprised when one of those turtles grabbed a trashcan off the sidewalk and smashed the frozen metal into the windshield of the van. When that happened, the driver veered the vehicle sharply to the left where it spun like crazy, due to the ice at the bottom of the sloping road. It was at this time that the four turtles began surrounding the van.

"Ok, action is now necessary," Tien declared, and stood up to find a way off the roof. "C'mon, Kei, we're going to save that scientist you love so much."

The both swiftly climbed down, landing without any noise like the shinobi they were. By this time, the turtles had begun to unsheathe a whole bunch of weapons seemingly out of nowhere. One had two katanas, another had a bo staff, the other had two sai daggers, and the last wielded nunchaku. They started raiding the van like it was nothing, with the katana turtle making a deep slice onto the top of the van.

"Hey!" Tien called out. "This is _our _target! What the heck do you think you're doing?"

Kei facepalmed. _Tien! Why so aggressive on the first instance?_

The sai turtle whirled around and glared at her. His eyes were a striking neon-green, standing out in the dark. "Your target? Well, you were unlucky then. 'Cause its ours now."

Kei rushed out before Tien could make another snappy remark. "What's your motive, then? We've come here to rescue a scientist that was captured. What about you?"

With the van's headlights smashed out, there was no more of that annoying light-and-dark contrast that hurt Kei's eyes. He could see now that the sai turtle had a red mask, the katana one had blue, the staff one had purple, and the nunchaku one had orange.

"We just wanna kick some Kraang butt!" the red one spat, and then leapt off the van to deal with the driver that had gotten out.

"I guess we're working together," Kei said, and withdrew a kunai knife.

"Eew! With turtles?" Tien made a face. "Oh, well, I guess I can't complain. But I like that red one's swag. He reminds me of someone."

_Of you, maybe? _Kei mentally asked, and then rushed in to the rescue. Tien, behind him, was making ninjutsu hand seals, preparing for a jutsu spell.

"Wood style! Wood bind jutsu!"

Roots of wood suddenly sprouted out of the frozen blacktop and reached out to twine and twist around the van's wheels as well as the legs of the weird businessmen that came out of the van. Kei looked back at Tien, giving her a salute as a way of saying thanks. He saw her wink in return and then she, too, was dashing in for the action.

One of the businessmen was suddenly brandishing a squarish gun of sorts, aiming it at the wood that was trapping him. Pink laser bullets were shot out and immediately detached the woody tendrils.

"Oh no you don't!" Tien yelled, and came diving in with a kunai knife at the man's face. She managed a large gash in it that took out his left eye, but...

He wasn't exactly dead or bleeding. He was...sparking.

"Huh?" She blinked. No matter, she drew back to make another jutsu. "Earth style! Earth prison jutsu!" The frozen earth beneath him suddenly engulfed him like a cocoon, leaving only his head uncovered, and then sank back down so that the businessman's head was exposed like a cabbage in the soil.

"Dude, that was awesome!" Tien heard one of the turtles say about her jutsu. She turned around and saw the orange-masked one waving at her. She frowned but then turned back to the businessman.

She kneeled down beside him, a curious hand reaching out for his face. His head was moving around frantically much like that of a bird's, but his eyes and mouth were unmoving. Weird. The gash in his face was pretty deep, but instead of blood there were only tiny sparks flying out every time he moved. Her hand was getting closer, only two inches away from his hair.

_Pew! _

A pink laser bullet zoomed right past her hand, startling Tien back into action. She saw one of the businessmen aiming his gun at her. With fast thinking, she ducked out of harm's way by somersaulting to the right, and then manipulated a big chunk of earth to hit him square in the stomach. He fell over as expected, but not without firing another shot that hit one of his brethren in the head.

The one that was hit was the one Tien had sunk into the ground. The moment the laser hit, a large flash of sparks erupted from the businessman's head. When it faded, it no longer revealed a human face but...

_A robot!_

"Wow," Tien said. "Just, wow." She got up to join Kei, but found herself assaulted by another one of those robots in disguise. She'd managed to bring up a wall of earth to block the lasers, and then let it down when the laserfire ceased. She smirked at the robot. "That's the best you got?" She quickly crouched down to make several more hand seals. "Shadow clone jutsu!" she yelled out at the finish.

Two clones of her emerged to either side of her. They both rushed at the robot-man and, with earth covering their feet, kicked him down. They held him that way for Tien when she unsheathed her lapis-lazuli sword. Its magic ability was giving off heat, and Tien made it do just that when she sunk it into the robot's belly. So much heat was released from the sword that it combusted the metal area surrounding the blade. As before, the robot's disguise was stripped, but...

"EEWW!" Tien screamed.

Kei poked his head out of the hole in the van's ceiling. "What is it?"

"A BRAIN!" She held up her sword, and true enough, a pink brain-shaped thing was dead and impaled on the point of the lapis-lazuli blade. She flung it off in disgust. "That is just wrong on so many levels!"

"They're called Kraang!" the blue-masked turtle called out from where he was fighting.

Tien shivered at the memory. "Euugh..." But there was still a battle to tend to. "So that's what he meant by Kraang," she muttered, and then, after canceling out her clones, leapt to the top of the van to see how Kei was doing. The turtles were all locked in combat on the ground below, so she was the only one up there. Thanks to her wood binding jutsu, most of the Kraang were dealt with accordingly.

Kneeling down to take a peek in on Kei, Tien saw him trying to slice the scientist's rubbery-tough binds with his kunai knife. "How's the rescuing going?" she asked.

"I'm trying!" Kei grunted.

She frowned, but saw another Kraang coming in from behind him; he was too busy to notice. "Look out!" she cried, and threw her kunai knife at the incoming Kraang. The blade sunk into its neck, sparks flying around it. Its coordination was broken for a fraction of that moment and it tumbled backwards. "I'll get it!" she offered, and going to the back of the van, slid down to land near the fallen Kraang.

Her lapis-lazuli sword was risen in preparation for a sweeping chop at its head...but before she could do it, the red-masked turtle suddenly flew in and took it out with his sais.

Tien was bristling. "What the heck? I was going to attack!"

"Heh." He smirked at her. "Should've been faster, then."

"Why you-"

"Tien!" Kei snapped. "Not now! Come help me!"

She was still glaring at the red-masked turtle. "Well, did you and your friends finish the fight or not?"

He flexed his arms. "Almost. Leo and Mikey are dealing with the last one."

She didn't even bother to ask who Leo and Mikey were. Instead, she quickly turned back to Kei, lapis-lazuli sword still in her hand. "All right, Kei, stand back." She raised her sword in the air, and with a simple slice, cut the man's binds loose. Kei pulled off the duct tape that covered his mouth and the scientist started blubbering thankfully to them on his knees.

The purple-masked turtle began to poke his head in. "Is everything all right here?" he asked. Seeing the red one's nod, he sighed in relief. "Great, no one's hurt. Oh, um, you'd better get that man out of here first."

"We know already," Tien snapped, and helped the scientist out with Kei.

"Oh thank you, thank you so much children," he kept saying repeatedly.

"It was nothing, sir," Kei reassured him.

"But it wasn't worth the ugly brain thing," Tien muttered.

The scientist was regaining his senses, and looked around wildly. "Wha...wha..." His eyes widened. "Turtles!"

Kei, in a momentary reflex of surprise, made a sweeping chop with his hand at the scientist's neck, knocking him out. When he realized what he'd done, he blushed and said, "Oops..."

Tien shrugged. "Oh well, at least he won't frighten himself to death." She looked around at the turtles in the snow. "Which wouldn't be so hard to do for a person like him...not with all these freakazoids around."

The red-masked turtle growled. "We're not freaks!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever."

Kei elbowed his teammate. "Tien!" He pressed the button of his mic, and then after catching Shii-sensei's signal, said, "Kei and Tien, rescued the victim. There was a bit of a situation, involving some brain aliens called Kraang and...you won't believe this, but ninja turtles."

"Shii and Naku, above your heads," Shii-sensei replied.

Kei and Tien both looked up in unison. True enough, there was Shii-sensei and Naku sitting on the ledge of the roof above them.

"Shii-sensei!" Tien called out. "When did you get here?" She was all smiles now. But that smile soon vanished. "Hey, don't tell me you were watching the whole time!"

Shii, a tall, brown haired, and well-built man in his mid twenties, smiled and then leapt down from the roof. "Relax, we just got here. By the way, I'd like to meet your new friends."

Naku followed suit, his Water Tribe coat flapping in the air as he sailed down. His hood was pulled over his head, to keep out the falling snow. "Let me help you, Kei," the Waterbender offered, taking hold of the scientist's arm opposite Kei. "Let's see..." He started rifling his gloved hand through the unconscious man's pockets, and withdrew a wallet. After taking a peek in it, he read an address, "And that's where we should drop him off," he explained.

Shii, hearing Naku speak, applauded him. "Bravo, Naku! Now, put that wallet back in." Turning back to the turtles, he began to talk. "So..."

* * *

The man known as Shii-sensei, after having ignored the brothers to talk with his students, turned back towards them. "So," he began. "Ninja turtles. Sounds quite interesting."

"Oh?" Raphael came up at him. "And what are you?"

"Ninjas," Shii replied calmly. "Just, ninjas."

"Raph, relax." Leonardo held out a hand, blocking Raph from attacking Shii. "In any case, they helped us with the Kraang. That wood trick especially...we wouldn't have finished the job so fast without it."

"You can thank me for it," the ill-tempered girl with the ponytail told him. According to her and her teammate's talk, her name was Tien.

"Yes, yes," Shii-sensei cut in. "My students are wonderful." He pat Tien's head to prove it. "I'd love to stay and chat, but we've got to get this gentleman back to where he was from."

"Sure, sure," Leonardo said with a pleasant smile. "We won't stop you."

"However-" Shii held up an index finger. "-you seem to know about whatever kidnapped this man. Care to tell us about them? It would help us a lot on our mission."

"You're on a mission?" Michelangelo asked curiously. "Who are you?"

"It's politer to introduce yourselves first before asking for an introduction," Tien said with a harsh snap in her voice.

Before Leo could say anything, Raphael stepped in his way. "Just who do you think you are, ordering us around like that? And how do we know we can trust you?"

"Um, hello?" Tien waved a hand in front of his eyes. "Didn't we just help each other out?"

"Didn't I finish that Kraang off before you could?" Raph shot back.

"You-"

Leonardo jumped in between them. "I am Leonardo, that's Raphael, and those two are Donatello and Michelangelo. And yes, we're ninja turtles. We were originally just turtles, but we got mutated when we came into contact with mutagen...which is this kind of substance that mutates whatever touches it."

"You guys were hit hard, then," Tien remarked.

Leo ignored her insult. "The Kraang need scientists to help them improve the mutagen, which isn't exactly very refined right now. That's why they're kidnapping them."

Shii-sensei nodded. "Thank you. We came here as bodyguards for another scientist who was worried about that. So I suppose, if we are going to investigate the matter, we might be meeting each other again. I am Shii Hiisawa, sensei of these three young shinobi." He swept his hand at his students.

Taking the cue, they started to introduce themselves. "I'm Tien," Tien started. "Just call me Tien."

"Kei Fukushima," the boy with the green highlights in his hair said.

"Naku," the other boy with the blue Eskimo coat said.

"And now," Shii said, looking at his students once more, "we must leave. Thank you for your information." Almost as if in a flash, he'd teleported himself to the top of the rooftop he'd been standing at earlier. His students began following his example. Then, with one last wave, they began to roof-hop away. The turtle brothers said nothing until their figures were lost in the distance.

"Man, I hope I never see them again," Raphael grumbled.

"He was kinda relaxed when he saw us," Mikey remarked. "That Shii-guy, I mean."

Leonardo shrugged. "Well, whatever the case, they are a very...different type of ninja than we are. Their fighting reminds me of Ahnnie's magic." At the mention of Ahnnie, his face grew soft again.

"You mean Tien's," Donatello pointed out. "She was the only one who was really fighting, if you'd noticed. Kei was busy trying to get the scientist out. The fighting style was different, too, because she had to do these hand signs before activating them. That also rules them out as Foot ninja."

Raphael spit into the snow. "Whatever. Let's just go back to the lair, now. Splinter'd want to hear this."

Leo sighed. "Yes, indeed."

And so the four turtle brothers leapt back onto the rooftops, the snow flying in their faces. Theirs was certainly an interesting report to give back to Splinter...interesting, indeed.


	2. Chapter 2

**I just realized, I forgot the disclaimers D: !**

**I do not own TMNT, or Team Shii, but am writing this for entertainment purposes only.**

* * *

The turtles came back to Splinter as promised. They were unable to get any pizza on the way home because of the blackout, but they didn't seem to mind. Their thoughts were still occupied by the strange ninjas they encountered, and the abilities they possessed. Perhaps Splinter-sensei would know more about them. After all, he was wiser and older than them.

"I am sorry," Splinter apologized with a sad shake of his head, "but these ninjas do not register much of a memory. They represent more of the ancient legends made up about ninja wielding mystical powers, than any ninja I have met or heard of."

"At least they weren't Foot ninja," Michelangelo pointed out.

Splinter nodded, but still looked troubled. "It is good that you did not get off on the wrong foot with them-"

"Heheheh," Mikey chuckled. "The wrong foot; Foot ninja; get it?"

The rat sensei threw him a look that silenced him. "-but," he continued, "I would advise further caution. If it is as you said, and they are on a mission for somebody, they would not consider you with such friendship should you come to be an obstruction to their duty."

Raphael tilted his head in confusion. "Pardon me, sensei, but how are we going to be an 'obstruction' in their mission?"

Splinter looked at him. "You are both going against the same enemy, the Kraang, are you not?"

"Well, yeah..."

"But if we work together, then everything should be fine," Leonardo said.

"That would be very good," Splinter agreed, "however...I do not know how put this to you...I have raised you to practice morality, compassion, and integrity, but in truth, other ninja are not taught to be so."

They were all silent. What did Splinter-sensei mean?

"You do recall the Foot ninja, and Karai?" he asked them.

"Hai, sensei," they all replied.

"Then you probably know by now," he continued, "that a ninja's loyalty often changes. So does their agenda. I am not saying they will betray you to the Kraang; I do not see how that will be possible, considering the nature of their mission; but if they find you helpful, they will use you. If they don't...well, they will not do anything, but if you insist on becoming a challenge to them, I cannot guarantee what happens next."

His words were cryptic and ominous, but the turtles felt they had no choice except to believe in them. After all, Splinter raised them, taught them...he would know what was best for them. They also learned a valuable lesson with Karai, even though Leonardo felt it was partly their fault.

Later, when they were relaxing, Raphael was passing his time by punching the stuffing out of a dummy. Leo (as always) watched his Space Heroes show, and Mikey and Don were busy having a Monopoly game that April had given them.

"Take this, and that, and that," Raph grunted as his fists connected with the dummy. He gave it a roundhouse kick and watched with pleasure as the head ripped and rolled off.

"Not again!" Donatello lamented. "Raph, do you know how many times I've had to repair that dummy?"

Raphael smirked and pounded a fist into his palm. "So? We have plenty more."

Michelangelo sighed mockingly. "It's ok, Donnie, he's just pissed off because he met his match today."

Raph whirled around, glaring at Mikey. "Met my match? Whaddyou mean by that?"

"Tien," Mikey said without hesitation. "Remember? That kunoichi?"

The red masked turtle huffed. "Hmph! Her? What about her?"

"Well, you both have the same attitude, for one. And the same anger!"

"Your point is?" Donatello asked.

"That they have so much in common," Michelangelo said, "and they should fight one day! I'd like to see Raphael getting his butt whupped by a girl."

Raphael shook his head mock-sagely. "Ah, Mikey...so naïve...it's obvious that _I'll _win. Magic spells or not."

Donatello was growing worried, though. "Uh, I don't know, Raph...I really wouldn't do it, if I were you. There's no telling what kind of trouble we'll get into if we pick fights with them."

"But it _would _be fun to watch," Mikey insisted with a big smile on his face.

Raphael threw another punch at the dummy. "Who said I was going to pick fights with anybody? I was just answering Mikey's question."

"Well, well," Leonardo said as he entered the room. "Look who's thinking rationally for once."

"On second thought, I'd like to teach our hero a little lesson," Raph grumbled.

Donatello sighed exasperatedly. "Do you ever learn?"

"If learning means becoming anything like you, then no."

Michelangelo held Donatello back before he could lunge at his brother. "C'mon, guys," the orange-masked turtle pleaded, "stop arguing and relax! Geez!"

Raphael cracked his knuckles and flexed his neck. "Well, ok, but he was the one that was getting angry...not me."

"If Ahnnie were here, Leo would be more motivated to end this," Mikey mumbled under his breath.

"What'd you say?"

"Nothing," Michelangelo quickly said, and turned back to his game with Donatello.

* * *

Meanwhile, Team Shii had dropped off the rescued scientist back at his house. He was still unconscious, so they left him at the steps of his front door. Naku gave the door a knock and they all dispersed before it opened and the scientist's family found him. So, not only did they do a good job on their mission, they avoided being seen as well.

The blackout started to lift when they arrived back at the Barlow residence. It was a comely townhouse with four rooms, including the guest room, and a spacious living room that Tien fell in love with at first sight.

"I _love_ the Hollyday tree especially!" she exclaimed for the umpteenth time since arriving at the household. "And all the holly and decorations and stockings and...and...everything!"

"So basically, you love the decorations more than anything else in the house," Naku said.

Dr. Barlow lived at the residence with his wife; he had a daughter, but she grew up and now attended college in New Jersey. Because of that, there were two empty rooms in the house, and they were presently occupied by Team Shii. Shii-sensei, Naku, and Kei got the guest room...Tien was able to have the daughter's room all to herself (something that she loved to point out every now and then).

"I am curious, however," Mrs. Barlow, a kind-faced woman with sandy blonde hair in her forties, wondered, "about why you call it Hollyday instead of Christmas?"

Naku was trying to think of a way to explain it so that it wasn't insulting to her. "Well, you see, ma'am..."

"...there are lots of hollies used to decorate around this time, right?" Tien cut in. "So, we got the idea from there. And 'Hollyday' sounds a lot like 'Holiday', so we decided to stick to that because it sounded much cooler."

_Wow, _Naku thought, _she didn't drag any religion into it...I'm amazed._

The truth was that Tien and her siblings saw Christmas as a Christian holiday; however, they were Buddhist. It was a complication for them because they enjoyed the holiday too, not because of Jesus, but because of Santa. No, not because Santa gives presents, but because every December they go on a pilgrimage to the North Pole on their big sister's ship, the _Imaginarium_. Once there, they join in on the festivities at what they call the Santa Village (i.e., where Santa and his factory is) until New Year's. They typically travel to different locations first before reaching the North Pole, coming to their destination on the twenty-first of December. The more adventure, though, the better. Tien especially loved to go on the trip, but had to stay back with Team Shii because of the mission. She didn't seem to mind, though.

"I just wish I went with Ahnnie and TB to Santa Village!" Tien just then exclaimed.

Naku took his previous thought back. _She really minds it. _

"What is Santa Village?" Mrs. Barlow asked curiously. "Is it a Christmas themed resort?"

"Even better!" Tien said, and just left it at there. It would be insane, after all, to tell the truth to someone who wouldn't believe.

"I hear it's somewhere in Germany," Naku improvised. "Tien doesn't tell me much about it, so..."

The middle aged woman smiled. "Oh, no, it's fine, I was just curious." She seemed to be amused by their jokes and petty arguments.

Kei, who had just gotten to the bathroom, came out rubbing his eyes sleepily. He took a gander down at his watch and told everyone the time by saying, "Holy cow, it's ten-thirty. I'm going to hit the hay."

Naku shrugged. "I suppose I should too...How about it, Tien?"

"I haven't gotten my hot chocolate yet," she said. "Shii-sensei's still talking with Dr. Barlow, so I wasn't able to ask him. I wonder how long that'll take?"

Mrs. Barlow, at the mention of Tien's desire for hot cocoa, immediately got up. "I can make you one if you like," she offered.

"Really?" Tien's eyes brightened.

"Really."

"You're the best!" She hugged the elder woman, and smiled at her. "Show me how to make it, too!"

"Ok, let's go to the kitchen." Mrs. Barlow was smiling back, and entered the kitchen with Tien trailing her like a little duckling, or an excited puppy...or both.

Naku and Kei exchanged glances, then looked up at the stairs. Shii-sensei had been cooped up in Dr. Barlow's study ever since they got back and he went to give the doctor the newly-gleaned information on the Kraang. It seemed to be a sound-proof study, for no snippets were able to be heard of the two men's conversation.

"Should we go listen?" Kei asked.

"What if Shii-sensei spots us, though?" Naku countered.

Kei shrugged. "Well, I don't know...we're ninjas, aren't we? We can be stealthy."

"I suppose, but..."

"But nothing! Let's go. I can't get this worry off my chest otherwise."

Naku looked curiously at him. "Why are you worried? You don't even know what they're talking about yet."

"Yes, but..." Kei shook his head. "Never mind. Let's just go!"

And so they did. The two boys crept up the stairs, sneaking on the balls of their feet so that they made little to no noise. Once up, they stepped calmly over to the study door, which (to their surprise) was open a crack. A teensy one, but a crack all the same.

The two boys crouched on either side of the door. They each had their ears near the wall, and so settled in silently to eavesdrop on what was going on inside.

"Mr. Hiisawa, I didn't hire you to tell me jokes," Dr. Barlow was saying rather angrily. "Here I was, waiting at home to see what you would have, and you tell me that it's aliens kidnapping the city's scientists? Do you honestly think such an answer can sate anyone, especially of my profession?"

"I understand your skepticism," Shii-sensei said, trying to convince him. "But it was the truth. My students fought with the droids the aliens used to disguise themselves with, and even killed one. You can ask the scientist we rescued about it; he should know, since he was kidnapped by them."

"And what did you say they were doing it for; to get help in improving mutagen? What is mutagen anyway? And how did you know?"

"A few witnesses who knew about the Kraang told us," Shii-sensei answered, leaving out the fact that those witnesses were mutant ninja turtles. "It's a substance that mutates whatever organism it touches. I don't know how it works either, but that was what I was able to glean off."

"And you just believed these witnesses?"

"I know it sounds ludicrous, Doctor, but I cannot tell you otherwise. This is also the first lead we've gotten onto ever since coming here. Even if it doesn't sound plausible, it should be considered."

"Listen here, Mr. Hiisawa-"

Suddenly, a new voice crept in behind Naku and Kei. "What're you guys doing?"

The two boys instantly whirled around, opening their mouths to scream, but silenced themselves when they saw it was just Tien, a cup of hot cocoa in her hands.

"Shh," Kei shushed her, and gestured for her to sit with them. "We're listening to Shii-sensei and Dr. Barlow," he whispered.

"Yeah, and it seems like the Doctor doesn't believe in our report," Naku added.

Tien stayed quiet, listening to the talk inside. "Why that jerk," she growled when she heard Dr. Barlow talking angrily. "Huh! Just 'cause he's a scientist, he thinks he knows everything."

Kei and Naku nodded, both sharing Tien's opinion.

"Wait till he learns his lesson and gets kidnapped by the Kraang," she smirked.

The two boys looked at her in alarm. "Um, Tien," Kei said, "aren't we supposed to be protecting him?"

"I didn't even want to go on this mission in the first place," she pointed out.

"Yeah, well..."

There were the sounds of moving footsteps in the study. The three students, alarmed, immediately withdrew and ninja-leaped down the stairs. Tien was able to do it without spilling any hot chocolate, much to her satisfaction. Either way, they all assembled themselves on the couch to make it look like they'd just been chatting with each other. They were doing a pretty good job at it too when Shii and Dr. Barlow came down.

"-and I trust you, so I want to hear more _reliable _evidence next time. Got it?" the doctor was saying.

"No worries, Doctor," Shii-sensei assured him. There was an annoyed glint in his eye, though.

"Oh, Shii-sensei, Dr. Barlow!" Tien greeted them cheerfully as if everything were perfectly fine. "You two sure took a long time. Are you thirsty? Mrs. Barlow makes some real good hot chocolate!"

Kei and Naku could see, though, that Tien's grip on her cup's handle was near-crushing.

_She must be trying to keep herself calm, _the both of them thought.

Shii-sensei smiled wearily. "Thank you, Tien. Now that you mention it, I would like some."

Dr. Barlow sighed. "Yes, thank you, but I'll pass. I've had a lot of coffee today."

Mrs. Barlow had already moved off to the kitchen to make Shii-sensei a cup. Both Kei and Naku requested some too, so when she emerged she had three hot chocolates in her hand.

"Ah, thank you," their sensei said as he received his cup.

"You're welcome," she replied cordially. "Would you like some tea, dear?" she then asked her husband.

"I said, I'm fine," the doctor snapped.

Tien, with a huff, turned back to her hot chocolate. Her eyes stayed glued onto the resplendent Christmas tree, although they did not look like they were enjoying the tree. Kei and Naku could also sense the tension in the air, although they did not generally do much to show it. This happened often in the ninja world of missions: demanding clients, who often did not follow the advice of those they hired. Well, whoever said you could choose your clients? If it were that easy, being a Konoha ninja; or a ninja from anywhere in the shinobi nations; would've been a breeze.

* * *

Tien couldn't sleep. She was lying awake on the Barlows' daughter's bed, hugging an extra pillow, and staring up at the ceiling. Her hair lay loose about her, as she did not wear a ponytail to sleep (duh, no one does). Occasional sighs and huffs would escape from her as her mind raced with thoughts. Poor Shii-sensei; he had to deal with some scientific jerk who didn't even know the danger he was in, and not only that, but protect him, too. Poor her, too, for she had to miss this year's Santa Village trip (or at least, a good portion of it) just for the same scientific jerk.

And then Naku and Kei! If it weren't for the mission, they could've gone along too. The siblings were generous, after all, and usually took their friends with them when they could.

"Aagh, I can't stand it!" She immediately sat up in the bed, her hair a bed-head mess around her. She simply shook the hair down and sat still in the dark room, listening to the sounds of the house. A creak of wood here and there; some snoring; the ventilation turning on and off; a music box. Wait? Music box?

On the alert, Tien threw the covers off and began to sneak out of the room. The music box sounded like it came from downstairs. With a tiny gulp (for a music box in the middle of the night often gives the impression of, oh, I don't know, a haunting) she made her way down to investigate. Of course, on a normal basis, she wouldn't be doing anything this stupid. But this was the house of a client, whom she and her teammates had a duty to protect. Kraang or no Kraang, they had to protect Dr. Barlow from...well, anything that held potential harm.

Her bare feet reached the bottom of the stairs. The entire first floor was hardwood, so it was cold to the touch when she arrived. A tiny shiver went up her spine, but the continued playing of the music box urged her on. The stairs led straight down to the living room, and the Christmas tree was glowing a peaceful golden that gave off some helpful illumination for her.

Her head turned this way and that, and finally discerned the music box to be playing from near the tree. Slowly, she began to approach. Slowly, slowly...

"Tien."

"Whaa-" She couldn't finish her scream, because a hand covered her mouth.

"Tien," the voice said again. "It's just me; Kei."

From behind his hand, she let out a relieved sigh. Then she pushed it away. "Thank goodness!" she exclaimed in a loud whisper. "God, I thought it was a ghost!"

Kei shivered. "You know...I thought you were a ghost too...especially with that creepy music box playing."

"You heard it too?"

"Of course. Well, it was only after I suddenly woke up...but who cares, what matters is I heard it."

Tien looked back to the tree, but it was too dark to see what was under it. "Seriously...if that music box isn't anything dangerous..."

Kei knelt down, and bravely reached out to feel for whatever was under the glowing tree. His hand finally enclosed over something and he drew it out. "Ah, here." He stood up, and showed it to Tien. "Oh. It really is a music box."

Tien took it, inspected it, and then nearly threw it onto the ground like discarded trash where it would have broken if it weren't for Kei's fast reflexes. "It wasn't a bomb, didn't have any poisonous coating or release toxic gases, wasn't a cryptic message, certainly did not look like a Kraang invention...In short, it was nothing to be worried about."

Kei sighed in relief. "That's good." He sat down on a couch and placed the music box next to him.

"What're you doing?" Tien asked, sitting next to him.

"Sitting," he said. "I don't feel like I can go back to sleep yet. Not without everything that's happened."

"Hmm," Tien pondered. "I suppose meeting mutant ninja turtles and defeating a bunch of brain aliens isn't normal for one night. Why are you so occupied by it, though? They were all a bunch of freaks."

"Yeah, but...Lady Tsunade will have a hard time believing it too..."

That was true. At the end of the mission, Shii-sensei would be obligated to report to the Hokage on the mission's details. This was so that it would be recorded for future references. And while Lady Tsunade was certainly exposed to a lot of strange things ever since Tien, Ahnnie, and TB came to their world...well, it wasn't just everyday you could tell her you met a ninja turtle and brain Kraang without her pummeling you for being foolish. Unless, of course, you had evidence.

"I think I should bring home a dead Kraang for her," Tien suggested.

Kei chuckled and shook his head at the same time. "She'd be grossed out!"

"Yeah, but she'll believe us. No, I'll take pictures; that sound better?"

He nodded. "That sounds plausible. But did you bring a camera?"

"In my bag," she reassured him with a wink. "You know how I love to take pictures of you guys at random moments. I even got a shot of you chewing some of Mrs. Barlow's spaghetti with your mouth open."

"!?" Kei was alarmed. "W-when was that? I didn't see you pull out a camera!"

Tien huffed, crossing her arms. "I'm a ninja now, you know."

"Ok, ok, you win. But if you're such a ninja, can you explain why the music box was playing on its own, without anyone down here?"

Silence.

"Kei stop it, you're scaring me!" Tien squealed, and then dashed back upstairs.

"I'm sorry!" he apologized as he was running with her. "I just scared myself, too!"

They reached the top of the stairs and were breathless. When they caught their breaths, they exchanged looks and Tien said, "Let's just go back to sleep and pretend nothing ever happened."

"Yeah," Kei agreed.

And so they did. But little did they know, that something...something small...had been watching them.

* * *

Daytime at the turtle lair. And April was visiting, because she'd just finished school for the day.

"Guys, you won't believe what's on the news," she said excitedly, carrying her laptop into the living room. The turtles instantly crowded around her, curious. "A scientist claims he was kidnapped by pink brain-shaped aliens just last night, and that he was saved by two mysterious teenagers!" She looked at them all. "I know for sure the pink aliens are the Kraang. But were the teenagers you guys?"

Leonardo blinked. He immediately remembered who those two teenagers were. So did his brothers.

"Hmph," Raphael huffed. "So they give all the credit to those two weird ninjas instead of us."

April raised an eyebrow. "Huh? So, you guys were the ones that rescued the scientist? Then who were the two others?" She gasped. "Karai and a Foot ninja?"

"No, no, no," Leonardo said. "We didn't technically rescue the scientist; we were battling the Kraang who kidnapped the scientist. There were two others that did the rescuing, and they were ninja but they weren't Foot ninja. They, or at least one of them, had these powers that were activated by hand seals. Splinter said that they were more like the ancient legends depicting ninja with mystical powers."

April nodded, thoughtful. "Was it magic, like Ahnnie had?"

"No, she never had to use hand seals."

"Hmm..." April leaned over, her chin on her hands. "But then, who were they?"

Raphael shrugged. "They said they were on a mission for somebody, or something like that. That's all we know."

"That would suggest that they aren't based here in the city," Donatello pointed out. "Someone _from _the city hired them."

"Well, that's interesting," April remarked. "Were they from Japan?"

"Three of them were Asian," Donatello replied. "One looked like he was an Eskimo or Inuit."

April's eyes widened. "So there were more than two?"

"Oh yeah, we forgot to tell you." Raphael began pacing behind the couch. "One sensei, and his three brats. Our age, I think."

Donatello began to slide in next to April. "Enough on the ninjas. What happened with the scientist? Did anyone believe in him? Did the ones who rescued him come forward to get their thanks, or anything like that?"

April scrolled down on the Internet page, reading. "Well, a lot of people are calling him insane. The city's police believe it was just a result of some hallucination or too much alcohol. Extraterrestrial fanatics are really into it, though. But so far no teenagers have said anything about rescuing him, and the police have nothing on it either."

"Maybe they just didn't want to be seen," Mikey said, "like we don't want to be seen."

Donatello looked up. "That's actually pretty smart of you, Mikey...I'm impressed!"

"Aw, come on! I can be smart! I'm not always stupid!"

Raphael chuckled. "Yeah, not for that ten percent of the time you actually have an intelligent thought."

Michelangelo whirled around to glare at him. "I'm serious, man!"

"Did I say ten percent? I meant one."

"You...!?"

"Make that zero-point-five."

Michelangelo was about to hit Raphael.

"Guys!" Leonardo scolded. "Enough!"

April, pretending to have ignored the fiasco, turned back to her laptop. "Moving on..."

"Oh yeah," Donatello remembered. "We might actually be meeting those ninja again. Their mission had to do something with the Kraang; or so the sensei told us when we gave him info on them."

"But Splinter said they wouldn't be nice to us if, if..." Mikey was searching for the word.

"...we become an obstruction to their mission, yada, yada," Raphael said irritably. "Who cares, though? We'll do our own thing, they'll do theirs. I don't care what they think of us, but if they dare go out of line, I'll teach them a lesson they'll never forget."

"_If _you meet them again," April reminded him.

* * *

Another night out, but this time the three students would be going together; Shii-sensei hung back at Murakami's (last time he and Naku were simply offered shelter at the restaurant, since there was a blackout, but this time his students firmly believed he was getting ramen for real) and would contact them from time to time through their little mics. Their mission: to discover more about the Kraang. There were three ways to do it; first was to head back to the kidnapped scientist to ask him if he knew anything. The second was to keep an eye on the streets, in case the Kraang were out again. The third: find the turtles, and ask them more about the Kraang. But the third one was only if they ran into said turtles.

"Whatever you can get, then get it," their sensei had instructed.

And so they went, into the night, hopping over roofs as silently as if they were never there, despite the snow. It was snowing again this night, although not as heavily as before. Their destination was the kidnapped scientist's home. From there, well, they would have to figure it out for themselves.

Naku rang the doorbell. The others stood behind him, waiting, cautious.

It was finally answered by a young woman who seemed a bit jittery. "O-oh," she stuttered. "I'm sorry, this is isn't the place you're looking for. P-please, go home."

Kei blocked the door before she could close it. "It's ok. We're here to help. Was that scientist your father? He would recognize us."

She looked warily from Kei to Tien to Naku. "Look, we don't have the time for pranks. Just leave."

Tien scowled. "Who said we were going to prank anyone? And how are you going to know if you don't try?"

She was beginning to try and close it again. "I'm serious! If you three are up to no good, I'm going to call the police."

But, such was their stroke of luck, when the scientist from the previous night happened to look out at them from down the hallway where he appeared. "No, Katie!" he hurriedly said as he rushed over. "No, don't shoo them away. They're not pranksters. I know two of them. They were the ones who saved me!"

Tien smiled cockily, crossing her arms. "Yep, that's us."

Kei and Naku smiled too, but politer, unlike Tien.

"Come in, come in," the scientist beckoned to them excitedly. "I'm sorry about my daughter's behavior, it's just that after I spoke with the press a whole bunch of teenagers have been coming by and pranking us." As they were entering, he asked, "What would you like to have? Are you hungry? We were just finishing up dinner, but we still have some leftovers..."

"It's ok, sir," Naku reassured him. "We ate before we came here."

"Ah, I see." He led them to the dining room, gesturing for them to sit. "Please, have a seat." When they did, he sat down too, and looked them over one by one. "What brings you here, children? I am most indebted to you, so if I can, I will reward you. Ah, you must be here to collect your reward, is that it? Think nothing of it, you saved me after all-"

Kei interrupted him before he could go any further. "Don't worry Mr..."

"Harrison," the scientist provided.

"...Mr. Harrison. We didn't come for any money or reward. We only wanted to ask you a few questions."

Katie, the daughter, was in the kitchen when she heard him. "Why do you want to ask him questions?" she suddenly snapped. "Can't you see he's had enough?"

"Relax," Tien said. "We're not the paparazzi."

"Katie, that's enough," her father scolded her. "They saved me; I owe them that much, at least."

"But dad-"

Tien cleared her throat, interrupting their argument. "Sooo...before we begin...we'd appreciate it if you told nobody we came by and asked you anything. We can't tell you why but it's important to us."

"Of course!" Mr. Harrison nodded.

Katie rolled her eye and stomped away to her room.

"I promise Katie won't say anything of it," he added.

Naku looked after her angry form warily. "Please do," he said. "It's crucial to what we're doing."

"You see," Kei explained, "we want to help. But the police obviously aren't going to do anything about it. They don't even believe you. But we do. So don't worry; trust us, and tell us the truth. Or at least all that you know."

"Of course, anything you ask," the scientist nodded vigorously.

"Then," Tien began, "did you know you were going to get kidnapped, and by who? Or did it happen suddenly?"

"It was sudden, of course," Mr. Harrison replied. "But I recognized the businessmen that abducted me. One of them came to my workplace as a representative of some corporation and paid me and my colleagues to study this strange, neon-bluish ooze."

The three students looked at each other. Then they turned back to the scientist.

"What came out of your study?" Kei asked.

Mr. Harrison sighed, looking down upon his folded hands on the table. "Well, I suppose you wouldn't understand it if I put it scientifically, so I'll just speak plainly. The ooze contained a multitude of cellular organisms...think of it like bacteria, only a little different. Those organisms contained certain binding agents which, I was surprised to learn, bound the DNA of one organism with another."

Tien raised an eyebrow. "What does that mean?"

"Oh, sorry. Well, to give you an example, we tested it on a fly. The binding agents in the ooze suddenly started binding it with a mosquito that happened to go by."

"Did...did it become a monster?" Kei asked, wide-eyed.

The scientist chuckled. "Oh, no, it wasn't very big...but it was ugly, and it gave one of my colleagues a nasty bite. We ended up killing it with a fly swatter. However, thanks to that experiment, we were able to further study its properties and also come to the conclusion that it would be safest at a distance from people."

"Is that all?" Tien asked.

Naku interrupted her. "But wait; why would that make the same businessmen kidnap you? Mr. Harrison, do you remember anything specific in your studies that you think _might _be linked to your kidnapping?"

The scientist thought, and thought hard. "Well," he finally said, "I do believe I was on the way to discovering a reverse agent that could possibly separate the organisms affected by the ooze."

"That must be it!" Tien exclaimed, slamming a hand on the table. "That must be why they kidnapped you! Mr. Harrison, did any of those corporate cronies contact you when you discovered it? Like, did you hand in any reports to them or anything?"

Mr. Harrison nodded. "Yes...yes, they did. Our contract with them made it clear we had to report on anything we found, and I did report to them. You're right, they kidnapped me approximately two days after I reported it to them." His face grew pale. "Oh no...that means...they might come back for me..."

Kei reached out a hand and patted it on the scientist's hands. "Don't worry, we will protect you. It seems unlikely but if we were able to rescue you that time, I think we can manage in keeping them from you."

Tien shook her head. "No, we have too much on our hands already. It'd be better if you stay out of New York for a while, Mr. Harrison. Maybe go to some family you have out-of-state?"

The scientist frowned. "I have to get back to work in a few days..."

"Just tell your company you still feel too unsafe to go back," Tien said. "That's all. Or, fake a sickness that you can say is a result of the trauma."

Mr. Harrison was shocked. "I...I can't do that..."

"Oh, come on! Man up!" Tien leaned forward with a game face on. "It's not that hard to lie! If you have a doctor you trust, you can get the papers from him. Or go to any random doctor and make up a few symptoms. Your family and friends can act as witnesses. Look, what do you value more, your safety or your job?"

"Well..."

"Think about it like this. How can you do your job if you know you're going to be kidnapped a second time? And what if we aren't there when that happens? What would happen to you? And then your family, how would they go on without you?"

Mr. Harrison looked down at the table, then up at the ceiling; which, Naku, Kei, and Tien believed, was a sign that he was thinking of his daughter.

"Those business creeps know that you were about to discover a reverse to the mutagen," Tien continued, "which is what we'll call the ooze for now. Do you think they'd let you rest? I should know, I have had first-hand experience with creeps like them. And from my experience, they will not stop unless you die or they get their hands on you." _That, or you're able to outsmart them, _she thought. _But I'm not going to tell that to him. 'Cause there's no way he can outsmart the Kraang...who are, no offense, not that clever._

Kei and Naku went silent. They knew she was talking about the _BAN MAI, _or _DAWN, _a secret organization that targeted her family, or more precisely, her mother. However, they had no knowledge of the siblings' magic and the missions and adventures they went on, but they were still a looming force in their lives for pretty much splitting up their family, pitting them against each other, and so on. (A/N: For more on the _BAN MAI_, read my other fic, "The Blue Mask and Red Flame")

"I...I'll try," the scientist said at last.

Tien smiled. "That's the spirit! Up and at 'em!"

"It'll just be for a little while," Naku assured him. "Knowing those businessmen; who I'm sure you know are aliens by now..."

Mr. Harrison nodded. "Yes. It was certainly frightening...like something out of a science fiction movie."

"...they will not openly stop you from leaving," the Waterbender continued. "You've made some publicity about them, and though not many people believe in them, that is still something they have to be wary about. So you have nothing to fear. Make the arrangements, and contact us if necessary." He took a napkin from the table and a pen from Tien. Then, he started writing down Shii-sensei's cell phone number, as well as his and his teammate's. Once finished, he pushed the napkin over to Mr. Harrison. "Here. Keep this, and memorize them as best as you can."

"Thank you," the scientist said.

Kei pushed his chair back and stood up. "Well, I guess that's that. Thank you for your time, Mr. Harrison."

"Oh, it was my pleasure," the man said as he too was getting up to see his guests out. "Please, any time, kids...when I'm able to get out, I'll talk to you, and if anything happens down at the plant, I'll let you know."

"Ok, just make sure it's important," Tien said with a smile.

And so they were done. Mr. Harrison saw them out, they waved goodbye, he waved goodbye, Katie glared at them from her window...and they were back on the roofs again, feeling quite satisfied with themselves.

"I can't believe it!" Tien exclaimed. "We only knew about the mutagen for like, a day and right after we know the scientist who almost discovered how to reverse it! Beat that, turtles!"

Naku laughed. "Yeah, I guess we were kind of ahead of them."

"But you can't blame them," Kei said. "The way they look...it's not their fault they can't go around getting intel."

"Pff, yeah," Tien smirked. "People would catch them and put them in the zoo. I wonder what their exhibit plaque would say? _Shinobus Turtlelus?_"

"Was that supposed to be a scientific name?" Kei asked her.

Tien laughed out loud at her own joke. "Maybe...but whatever, let's just keep going. I'm going to fill Shii-sensei in on our visit." She pressed the mic, picked up the signal, and said, "Tien, with Naku and Kei, moving out on XXX street. Talk with scientist was a success."

"Shii-sensei, at Murakami's," he responded. "Good job. You have two hours left; make use of them."

"Yes, sir!"

Bloated with pride, Tien ventured forward, kind of leaving Kei and Naku behind her. They caught up soon, though, and were most surprised when they saw her stop. She held out an arm to keep them back, put an index finger to her lips, and gestured for them to follow.

The two boys wordlessly obeyed, sneaking down a fire escape along with her and stopping midway.

They immediately found themselves the audience to a fight down below, between none other than the ninja turtles and three tough-looking Asian men who seemed as though they belonged to a gang. It was quite easy to tell who was going to win, and not because the turtles outnumbered the men by four-to-three; they caught onto every move the gang members made, and gave equally devastating blocks and attacks.

When the fight was finished, and the gang driven off, Tien brought attention to herself by clapping...and clapping loudly.

"Bravo!" she said. "That was excellent! _Bravissimo! Stupenda!_" She was quoting from the 2004 Phantom of the Opera movie, but the turtles (of course) didn't know that.

"Hey!" Michelangelo called out. "Did you just call us stupid!?"

"It means 'stupendous', silly," Tien said, and leapt down agilely from the fire escape. "So, we meet again. How you doin'?" Naku and Kei quickly joined her.

The turtles looked warily at each other, then back at the team.

"We're doing fine," Leonardo finally said. "How are _you _doing? And what are you doing?"

"We're good. We were doing our mission," Naku added. "And you guys?"

Raphael sheathed his sais and crossed his arms. "Kicking Purple Dragon butt. That's the gang those goons were from."

Tien cocked an eyebrow. "So you pick fights with gangs? And here I thought you guys had a higher calling."

"What's that supposed to mean!?" Raph asked ferociously.

Donatello eased himself between them. "Hey, easy guys. Christmas is almost here; can't you be nicer to each other?"

Raphael huffed. "So what? How's that gonna stop anyone?"

"Yeah, especially not Mr. Anger Issues here," Tien jabbed. "Let's not drag Hollyday into this, 'kay?"

"Wait." Raph froze, glaring at her. "Did you just call it...Hollyday?"

"I can call it whatever I want."

Naku and Kei looked at each other_. _Leo, Donnie, and Mikey did the same thing.

The red-masked turtle laughed. "What, is it suddenly the 'day of hollies' or something? Last I heard, it was called, 'Christmas'."

"Last I heard," Tien countered. "You didn't care."

"True. But I've never heard anyone call it 'Hollyday' before."

"Then you better believe it, because that's how I call it."

"It's 'Christmas', though."

"Hollyday is the better name."

"Christmas."

"Hollyday."

"Christmas!"

"Hollyday!"

"CHRISTMAS!"

"HOLLY_DAY_!"

Tien's teammates and Raphael's brothers swore they could almost see smoke coming out of the two arguing ninjas' ears, and maybe even lightning pass between their eyes. Naku and Leo ended up coming in between to separate them.

"Ok," Kei said awkwardly. "So...we just wanted to ask you a question."

"What is it?" Leonardo asked.

Naku, having gotten Tien to back up a few paces, turned towards Leonardo. "What else do you know about the Kraang?"

For some reason, the turtle brothers seemed to hesitate. It was only a while later that Mikey asked, "Ummm, why do you want to know?"

Donatello elbowed him. "Their mission, duh." Turning back to the team, he said, "Well, we had a fiasco with one of their power cells a while back. Turns out that they're aliens from another dimension, and they use the power cells to open portals from their dimension to Earth. That's how they got in."

"Oh, that _really _helps!" Tien yelled out from behind Naku.

Donatello frowned, and said, "If you want to know more, you might as well treat us better."

"Ignore her, please," Kei said. "Go on."

"They're trying to mutate everyone with the mutagen," Donnie continued. "We found out some time ago that they're doing so to make this planet more hospitable for them. And yes, that means they're trying to take over Earth. They also seem to want a friend of ours, but for what reason, we have no clue."

"Anything else?"

The purple-masked turtle shook his head. "Sorry. That's all we've got. We're still trying to find out more."

"Yeah, and you could've done it faster if you weren't fighting gangs!" Tien remarked.

Ignoring Tien, Naku nodded and exchanged a look with Kei. Kei looked back at him and began moving off to inform Shii-sensei, but a little more privately so that the turtles wouldn't hear.

Mikey crossed his arms. "Fighting gangs isn't the only thing we're doing! We have other enemies too, like Shredder and the Foot ninja, and Baxter Stockman. For your information, we even know where the Kraang base is."

His brothers, alarmed, tried to silence him. "Mikey, no!" Leo mouthed, but it was too late.

"We break into there all the time," Michelangelo boasted. "So that makes us a step ahead of you!" He looked smug.

Kei had come back from talking with Shii, and he, Naku, and even Tien, who seemed to forget her argument, came towards the turtles.

"Oh, really?" Tien asked, interested. "Care to tell us where it is?'

"We can't let you off the hook, now that you've let us know," Kei added, smiling more than a little evilly.

Michelangelo was stepping slowly back, suddenly realizing what he'd done. "Oh...um...I was just kidding..."

Naku was probably the only one still under a semblance of niceness. "Please," he said. "We can help. We're fighting the same enemy, aren't we? Haven't you heard the saying, 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend'?" His blue eyes were sparkling in a pleading manner.

Leo found himself hard put. "Well...if Mikey already told you..."

Raphael interrupted him. "No! Remember what sensei said to us!"

"If we just show them the base, I don't see how it's going to..."

After a while of being locked up in argument, Leo and Raph finally separated, with Raphael looking very disgruntled. The blue-masked turtle came up to the shinobi team with as polite a face as he could pull off. "You're right," he said, "we're both fighting a common enemy, and we really should help each other out. So I suppose we _will _show you the base...but," he held up an index finger, "we'll just show you. No infiltrating, no nothing, at least not without a plan."

Tien smirked. "Deal."

As she said the word, the turtles felt a sudden ominous feeling in the air. What were they getting themselves into?

_To be continued..._


	3. Chapter 3

"Are you sure this is such a good idea?" Raphael asked Leo as they roof-hopped in the general direction of the TCRI building. Team Shii was following them. "I know I don't like following orders but Splinter made some pretty good sense. Who knows if we can trust these guys? They might just turn out to be like Karai again."

Leonardo gave an exasperated sigh. "I know how you're feeling, Raph, but I don't think we can argue with them right now! Unless you forgot, Mikey gave away the fact that we know where the Kraang base is. They would have left us alone if he didn't say anything. But now that they know, they can't, and we can't do anything about it unless you want us to be turned into turtle soup."

Raphael gritted his teeth, obviously frustrated at the fact that the ninja following them _were _beyond their level of fighting and that they had to help them.

"I said I was sorry, ok?" Michelangelo repeated for the fourth time. "I didn't mean to...it just slipped out of my mouth..."

"We know, Mikey," Donatello said. "Just try to be more careful next time."

"And a little less of a show off," Raphael muttered.

Mikey looked angry and hurt at the same time. "H-hey!"

They were interrupted by the team behind them. "Everything ok up there?" Kei was asking.

"Everything's fine," Leo reassured him, looking back briefly and then turning back around.

Meanwhile, on Team Shii's end...

"Do you think they're telling the truth?" Naku asked his two other teammates.

"C'mon, Naku, it was pretty obvious the orange one wasn't that clever," Kei said. "And what do we have to lose? Either way, we can still get out if we use our jutsu."

Tien was grinning. "This couldn't have gotten any better! That idiot Barlow had better thank us for this when we're finished."

Naku was still thoughtful. "But...our mission is to protect the Doctor _and _get information on the kidnappers if; and I say IF; we could. We got information, but the Doctor won't believe us. And I know heading to the Kraang base is helpful too, but...what are we going to do? It's not like we're going to invade them. We only need intel on them, not destroy them."

"Who said we were going to destroy them?" Tien asked irritably. "But, whatever we can do...just do it, you know? I don't like the idea of aliens invading the planet either."

Kei shrugged. "They haven't appeared on our end in Konoha. Neither have you seen them in Georgia, right?"

Tien shook her head. Kei mentioned Georgia because that was the home state of all three siblings.

"I think their involvement must be recent, then," Kei deduced. "Ok, well, I didn't have to bring up Konoha. But if we haven't seen them anywhere else...if scientists are disappearing only in New York City...then we aren't in much of a danger yet."

"This makes it the perfect opportunity to strike," Tien added.

Naku looked at her. "Don't tell me you're..."

Tien laughed, shaking her head. "No! I'm not stupid! I know I don't like listening to others but Leonardo made some perfectly good sense. If we don't have a plan, we can't attack. I'd just like to _try _a few things, is all."

They were heading closer to the TCRI. The big building was looming ahead of them, gradually growing in size as they came closer. They came in from the back but they could still see the big words on the side of the building, and the cogwheel insignia directly below. One would be under the impression that the TCRI building was just another corporate building, dealing either in the manufacture of technology or storing computer engineers in boring office cubicles. Little did anyone know of it's true purpose: to serve as a base for creepy alien beings.

The turtles and team stopped on the roof of a nearby building, standing with their backs to the wind as the snow continued to fall. They were silent for a while to give Team Shii some time to take a good look at the building; afterward, they were open to questions.

"Are you kidding me?" Tien was the first to ask. "It looks like any old building."

"T-C-R-I," Naku was slowly reading. The Water Tribe boy was not very accustomed to English letters yet, but was learning. "What does it stand for?"

Donatello, of course, gave the explanation. "Techno-Cosmic Research Institute. It's a scientific corporation that is, obviously, the Kraang's mask for their real operations."

Kei raised an eyebrow. "Who works inside?"

"The bottom two-thirds of the building have offices where unsuspecting people work," Donnie continued. "Kraang in human disguises are there too. The businessmen, if you remember."

"Uh, hello?" Tien said. "This building looks _perfectly normal._"

He frowned at her. "Have _you _ever been in there? No! You haven't!"

"We even found their portal!" Mikey added. "It's at the very top-" Raph and Leo had covered his mouth by this time though.

She crossed her arms. "How can you prove to me that this is where the Kraang are and not some random building you picked out by chance?"

Raphael, incensed, came up to her until he was only an inch or so away. "Listen here; we showed you where it was, right? We leapt all over those roofs in the freezing cold just to bring you here, right? _Why would we lie to you!?_"

Tien, unfazed, continued to hold level with his stare. "So you have no proof?"

"Proof? You want proof? Yeah, I'll give you proof!"

Leonardo had to push Raphael back before he could carry out his threats. "Raph!" he scolded. "Chill down." He turned back to her with a stern face. "It's understandable how you're feeling about all this, but it is the truth, and if we just stand here and watch awhile one of those businessmen are bound to come out in their vans. _That's _how you'll get your proof."

Tien smiled smugly, but it was unclear whether or not Leonardo's reassurances had convinced her. Kei and Naku seemed to be holding neutral positions on their teammate's suspicions, although it wouldn't be too strange if they were doing so because they also felt the same way. The turtles just wondered if they had to really go through with this...they showed them the Kraang base, gave them information; apparently, they'd done enough. If anything, they should be allowed to leave, to go about their own business. There seemed to be no reason for their being there anymore, except to help infiltrate the TCRI...and they all knew how foolhardy that would be at the moment.

But before either of the turtles could express this concern, sudden shadows seemed to drop all around them. They instinctively whirled around, looking left and right. Men dressed in dark clothing stood hostilely on all sides of them. Team Shii wouldn't know this but they were being surrounded by black-clad Foot Clan ninjas, silent and poised and ready for battle.

"Foot Clan, huh?" Raphael spat. "Don't tell me you guys are associated with them...because if you are..." He was referring to Tien, Naku, and Kei while glaring at them.

Tien scoffed. "What the heck? Why would we be in a clan named after feet?"

"The point is, no," Naku interrupted. "We don't know who these guys are."

Nothing seemed to be happening for a while. The Foot ninja just stood around them, crouching in wait for their first move. In the midst of the standstill, Kei withdrew a kunai knife, unable to wait any longer. There was just no time to let the enemy have the first move, or wait until the turtles did. Shii-sensei only gave them two more hours...they'd wasted about a half-to-one hour already...

A sudden flash of metal shined in the night as an armored person leapt into the middle of the circle. For a moment, Team Shii thought it was an ally. A little while later, they realized it was another enemy.

"So the turtles have come back to spy on the TCRI," she said sarcastically. "Well too bad. I'm doing that tonight." She seemed to notice Team Shii for the first time, and made a face of mock-surprise. "Oh, and you brought friends! How nice."

Tien glowered at her. "Who are you?"

The girl opposing them seemed to be about their age or a year older, with punkish makeup and a hairstyle like Hinata's...only with sharper bangs, and the bottom dyed blonde. She was dressed in some dark clothing underneath her armor, which itself wasn't very armor-like. It was more like separated pieces of metal that only protected the vital spots.

"Who am I?" she asked. "I'm surprised...they haven't told you?"

Kei looked at the turtles. He could tell that their relationship between this strange girl was more than a little strained.

"Karai," Raphael eventually hissed.

Karai smirked. "Hmph. Took you long enough."

" 'Too severe'," Kei muttered. "What a thing to name a girl."

"This is just freaky!" Tien exclaimed. "It's like I'm looking at an evil Hinata...Wait till I tell Naruto about this."

If Karai was confused or unsettled by their remarks, she did not show it. Instead, she let her eyes settle on Leonardo and gave him a teasing smile. "Hmm. Your friends seem a little different this time around. The more the merrier, I suppose. But you seem to be going pretty good without your girlfriend here, aren't you, Leo?"

Leonardo, knowing she was referring to Ahnnie, tried his best not to let her comment bother him. "She has nothing to do with this, Karai. We don't want any trouble, so it would be best if you let us go in peace."

"You have a _girlfriend!?_" Tien exclaimed again, cutting them off. "Oh my god! Some idiot actually fell in love with a turtle! Or what, is she another turtle?"

Karai seemed amused. "You'd be surprised. She's a human."

"She must be blind," Tien remarked just before Kei covered her mouth. "Mmmfffgh!" she protested, and swiped it away.

"We've got no time for this!" Naku reminded them, and immediately dropped into stance. He did what looked like a series of Tai Chi movements, but to the surprise of those who didn't know him, the snow came up at his command and turned into water. He guided the water like a whip at five of the Foot ninja in front of them, splashing them with ice cold h2o and effectively driving them backwards.

That seemed to trigger everyone's fighting instincts, and the entire rooftop was soon stage to a fierce battle. The turtles went to help fight off the other Foot ninja, while Kei found himself being locked in combat with Karai. _Why me? _he asked himself when she'd lunged for him. _Sure, pick on the guy with the green highlights... _He had only his kunai to block her katana, but he wasn't pressed too hard when he'd leapt back and made some hand signs.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Two of him appeared on either side and rushed at her while he himself prepared a substitution jutsu for when she would figure out the genuine out of the clones.

Karai was certainly surprised when she saw her opponent multiply himself, so she was a little caught off guard when the two clones came at her. They'd grabbed onto her arms but she flipped one of them off judo-style and stabbed the other with her sword; the ones she'd hit immediately poofed into white smoke. Incensed, she came after the real Kei and struck him on the back, but he too poofed away and became a cinder block.

"There aren't that many logs here in New York!" he explained to her as he somehow came from behind her. "So I had to improvise." He immediately gave her a chop to the neck, that while it didn't faze her, made her stumble, and then sidestepped to get in front of her, delivering a back kick to her stomach. It was armored but still received some of the impact.

Meanwhile, Naku found himself freezing and submerging many Foot ninja at a time with his Waterbending. The snow all around him was providing ample ammunition, and when three Foot ninja rushed at him, he released a frozen wave that left them shivering where they fell. He pretty much did not have to move from his spot, manipulating the snow as he saw fit, but he had to admit he was having a hard time matching their speed and numbers. _How many are there? _he wondered, just as he'd stabbed the belly of one with a sharp impromptu icicle point. _Woops! Sorry. _That was also around the time he had to whirl around and make a block of ice to keep a Foot ninja from ambushing him...and he'd hit right where it hurt. _Ouch! I'm so lucky I'm not you._

Tien felt she was doing pretty good herself. She hadn't used any jutsu yet but rolled out a few of her enchanted gems, namely her Confusion Emeralds, Strength-Eating Sapphires, and Poison Rubies. She was on the turtle side, finding herself obligated to help them. Mikey in particular found the effects of the Confusion Emeralds hilarious, when they hit several Foot ninja and made them think they were ballerinas. One of them did a leap off the roof, and he wasn't seen again. The other two were busy in their roles as prima donnas, and Donatello took them down by bashing their heads with both ends of his staff.

Tien used the jewels in moderation, though, and began to get physical. She pulled out her lapis-lazuli sword and started to hack-n-slash at several of the Foot ninja. Raphael happened to be at her back, taking down the oncoming ninja with his sais. After a bout of fighting, they ended up bumping backs (and shell), turning around in unison to glare vehemently at each other.

"Watch where you're going!" Raphael complained.

"Hey, I'm not the one with the shell here," Tien shot back. "I think _you _should watch your feet. And shell."

Raph tried to not get too angry with her as more Foot ninja were coming at him. "And this is coming from the girl who calls Christmas 'Hollyday'."

Tien had just ducked another Foot ninja's hand swipe and grabbed the front of his mask when she got up, ripping it to reveal his mouth. She elbowed him in the stomach and delicately placed a Poison Ruby inside when it opened in a silent exclamation of pain. "What does that have to do with your clumsiness?" She watched as the affected Foot ninja coughed and sputtered and then fell unconscious to the ground.

"For your information, I'm not the clumsy one; that's Donnie."

"Hey!" Donatello yelled from where he was standing.

"Nice one, but I still think you should watch where you step," she finally said, and made a big stomp on the ground. A ripple of stone headed towards the Foot ninja she was facing and tripped all of them onto their backs.

Leonardo heard the noise, and was quick to warn Tien against using her stomping again. "That's nice, but you'd better not do it a second time! There might be people in this building, you know?"

"Yeah, yeah, I got it." She butted the face of a Foot ninja with the end of her sword's hilt and then slashed at him with the blade's searing heat.

By this time the number of Foot ninja were going down. Karai had gotten back up on her feet after Kei's attacks on her, but he had hounded her so relentlessly she barely found herself able to fight back. Eventually she struggled up while hugging her ribs with one hand; the other was still holding her sword. Her eyes scanned the rooftop and, seeing the small chance of victory they had, decided to pull back.

"Let's go!" she commanded to the Foot ninja, and the remaining ones followed her. Those that were too injured or unconscious were picked up by fellow clan members and swiftly taken away from the field.

"Interesting show," Karai had commented before she too left. "We'll be back for more." And then she was gone.

"Back to get your butt whupped!" Tien called after her.

Michelangelo whooped at their victory. "Yeah!" he exclaimed. "We beat Karai! You see that guys? We beat her!"

Kei scoffed. "You mean, _I _beat her."

Mikey came up to him and gave him a big smack/pat on the back. "And the enemy of our enemy is our friend, bro."

Naku came over, letting the water fall back down and freeze up again as ice. "Glad you could think that way. Now, if you could tell us..."

Raphael groaned. "What do you want to know now, that you haven't already?"

The Waterbender held up two hands. "Hey, easy. We just want to know who Karai is. Is she involved with the Kraang in some way? Do we have to worry about her getting in between our mission? Stuff like that."

"She seems to have led those ninja into action," Kei added. "She must be a leader of some sort, but to tell you the truth, she's young."

Leonardo spoke before anyone could disagree. And anyway, the turtles didn't see how letting them know about Karai would be damaging. To them, anyways. "Karai is the daughter of Shredder, our other enemy," he explained. "Shredder is after us to take revenge on our sensei. Karai just carries out her father's orders. She found out the Kraang and decided to do a little something on her own about it, but she's still our enemy. That's all."

"You're enemies with a paper shredding machine?" Tien asked.

"What? No, he's a person; 'Shredder' is just his nickname. His real name is-"

"I know, just kidding. Got you, didn't I?"

Leonardo tried to calm himself down. "R-right...funny joke..."

"Yeah, Leo! You almost gave away his _real name_!" Mikey accused, and it took the rest of them a while to figure out he was only being sarcastic.

But they were immediately interrupted when, apparently, the door to the roof opened up and a shocked woman in a bathrobe with curlers in her hair yelled into her phone, panicking, "Oh my god! Officers, it's vandals in costumes! Please come as soon as possible!"

"Shoot," Tien cursed. "Must've alerted her when I did my earth stomp."

Kei looked around frantically. They had to get away, now. But if she saw them roof-hop...

Their dilemma was quickly cured when Mikey threw and extended the chain of one of his nunchaku so that it thwacked behind her neck, causing the woman to fall unconscious.

"Let's move, _now!_" the orange-masked ninja prompted them when he found them standing there, staring at him.

Tien snapped out of it. "Huh? Wait, I didn't get my proof!"

Sirens were already blaring down below in the street.

Naku grabbed onto her arm. "Not now! The police are going to come!"

"God-dangit, I wanted to bring home a Kraang for Dr. Barlow!" Tien protested, revealing then her true intentions.

It took both Kei and Naku to drag her away from the rooftop and consequently, away from the TCRI building. She stopped struggling after they reached the second building, cooperatively roof-hopping alongside them until they judged that their distance was far enough to keep from being spotted by the police. When they stopped, the TCRI was still in sight but much farther than it had been.

"What's this about bringing home a Kraang?" Leonardo asked conspicuously.

Before Kei and Naku could respond, Tien spoke. "Technically not home-home. Just back to that jerk of a scientist who we're supposed to protect."

"Why would you _do _that!?" Donatello asked incredulously. "Do you know how dangerous that is!? Not to mention what a Kraang would do when-"

"She's going to bring it back dead, of course," Raphael interrupted, arms crossed.

Donnie blinked. "...oh..."

Tien smiled at the red-masked turtle (for the first time since meeting him). "You couldn't have put it better." She then sighed, and looked out at the city beyond TCRI. "Anyways...thanks, for showing us where their base is."

The others, sensing her melancholy, stayed politely silent. It was, of course, a very surprising thing to everybody that she actually _thanked _someone, much less the ninja turtles. But to bring it up at the moment would...well, just not fit with the mood.

Kei came up from behind her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Come on, Tien...let's go."

She let herself be pulled away and walked sullenly back to her team. Naku nodded as she went by him and prepared to leave as well, with Kei directly behind him. There was just something about the way they turned their backs that tugged at the ninja turtles' compassion (or maybe all of them minus Raph). So it was equally surprising that Raphael should be the one to stop them from leaving.

"This is just anti-climactic," Raphael said. "You guys are just going to leave looking all sad and not explain why?"

Naku raised an eyebrow. "Suddenly, you care?"

"There's obviously something you aren't telling us," Raph reasoned. "So spit it out. I hate it when people are being indirect."

The turtle brothers looked at one another curiously, eventually turning back to watch. Was Raph being...sympathetic?

Tien turned back around. She seemed different; calmer, almost. Her eyes were looking directly at Raph's, and it was hard to tell whether she was looking with apprehension or understanding. "We're here to protect a scientist," she said. "Because he's such a wimp and thinks he's going to go missing like all the other scientists are. The other night, when we first met you guys, we got onto the first lead ever after days of staking out. Obviously, it was when you told us about the Kraang. Our sensei, Shii-sensei, reported it to the scientist...but he didn't believe us." She let it sink in before adding, "I wanted to bring back a dead Kraang so I could show him that they _are _real. And so that he won't be so hard on Shii-sensei anymore."

Kei blinked. _Tien...you do have a heart..._

Raphael was quiet, but Leonardo nodded and said, "We understand. It can be hard to prove these things. It just takes time."

Tien nodded. "I know. I hope you can help us, too...despite the fact we kinda...didn't get along."

"Yeah, well, at our convenience," Raphael said. "We have other things to do, you know."

"Like pick fights with gangs?"

He twitched. "Hey, that's not all we do! We-"

She laughed. "I was just kidding. Can't you take a joke? Sheesh." She turned back around. "Later, guys...we've a jerk of a scientist to get back to."

"What report will you give him?" Donatello asked.

She shrugged. "We gave him empty reports before this. He should be used to hearing them by now. Until he believes, that's the best we can do." She gave them one last smile. "See ya next time!" And she hopped away to another roof.

Naku saluted them as well, and hopped away after his teammate. Kei was the last to follow, having given the turtles a final look back before he officially left.

When the teammates were far away enough from the turtles, hopping with the snow flying in their faces, Kei decided it was a good enough time to speak. "You sure hit a soft spot in their shells," he remarked. "Did you see them? They were much more open than they were before..."

"But I can't believe of all things, we ended up having to face another enemy," Naku said. "Karai doesn't look like the type to sit still, if you know what I mean."

"We kicked her butt! What could happen?" Kei asked.

"Kei, you know what I mean!" Naku groaned. "It's going to be harder for us to spy on the Kraang base now that she knows we're involved."

"Chillax, we'll find a way," Kei reassured him.

It was around this time that Tien gave a smirk.

"What is it?" the two boys asked their teammate.

"Oh, nothing," she said, a touch of the familiar sarcasm in her voice. "It's just that...we didn't get any Kraang, but we certainly got a few turtles."

Kei felt something sinking into his stomach. "Uh...Tien...what do you mean by that?"

Naku sensed the sudden tension in the air and looked at the both of them. "What? What?"

Tien calmly stopped in her hopping and pulled something out of her coat's pocket. Even though it was dark, the little light given off by the street lamps down below allowed them to clearly see the object for what it was. A camera.

The ponytailed kunoichi turned it on and sifted through her gallery of photos. Among them were shots of the turtles during the fight with Karai, and a few taken while Tien was giving her sad speech.

Kei and Naku's eyes widened when they saw the pictures, and when they realized what Tien had done.

"What are you going to use them for?" Naku asked cautiously.

Tien shrugged. "I don't know yet. But I will soon." She turned off the camera and slid it back into her pocket. "Like I said, I'm a ninja now."

* * *

_We've evaded danger this time...but I wonder what will come next?_

That was Leonardo was thinking of when he and his brothers were heading back to the lair. The ominous feeling they felt before showing Team Shii the TCRI may have vanished...it may have gone unproven with the safety in which they all retreated the scene...but there was still something tugging at him. Something that was being felt for...for the future...

"Yo, leader," Raphael interrupted him.

Leo turned towards him. "What?"

"What's the plan now?"

"What plan?"

Raph rolled his eyes. "Hello? What're we going to do about Tien and her team?"

Leo blinked. "Oh. That plan."

"So, yeah," Mikey said. "What are we going to do? Raph kind of said that we were going to help them..."

"At our convenience!" Raphael quickly added. "Unlike some people, I know how to choose my words."

"Hope you can learn how to do that from now on," Donatello remarked.

Leo sighed, turning back to the matters at hand. "I don't know. They seemed earnest. Obviously, I'm not going to fall for that," he said before Raphael could protest. "But in the very least they did not turn their backs on us when Karai and the Foot ninja attacked. They helped us. That should mean something, at least for now. Think of the benefits we can get with them on our side! Yeah, didn't anyone realize that?"

"Ahem?" Raphael pointedly tilted his head towards Leo. "Who was it that said we'd help them?"

Leonardo sighed in defeat. "You."

"You're awesome, bro!" Mikey exclaimed just before tackling Raphael in a hug, which threw him off-balance during his roof-hopping.

Donatello blinked, slowly realizing the point. "I see...wow, you actually forged an alliance, Raph! That's amazing!"

Raphael didn't look pleased. "You can stop talking like it's the most amazing thing you've ever seen. Now."

"Ok, sorry."

"What will we say to Splinter, though?" Mikey asked.

Leonardo answered without hesitation. "We'll tell him the truth of it. I'm sure he won't think of it so bad as long as we approach it like a necessary alliance, but not a _close _one."

Michelangelo nodded. "Aah...I see..."

"He'll _have _to agree with it," Leonardo added. "But we'll also have to watch ourselves. Remember, we may be helping them, but that doesn't mean we trust them."

Raphael cleared his throat again. "You don't have to tell us that. 'Cause if I remember...you were the only one who stuck up for Karai, and the rest of us were, I don't know...suspicious?"

Leo chuckled nervously. "Eheh..."

* * *

"More magicians?" Shredder asked, an unbelieving note ever so lightly tilting in his voice.

Karai bowed her head. "It appears so, father. But they seem different from Ahnnie. One of them used hand signs and wielded a kunai."

They were back at the Oroku Security HQ, where Shredder had his base and kept his army of Foot ninja. Karai had come back after an unsuccessful stake-out at the TCRI and explained everything to her father, the appearance of the three newcomers especially.

Shredder turned around, his back facing her, his arms folded behind him. "So they are ninja..."

Karai frowned. "I could tell that much by looking at the green-haired one. But I'm not sure about the ponytail girl and the Eskimo boy...they seem a pretty strange combination of ninjas, father."

"I could care less." His voice was cold and grating, as always. "What matters more is that you saw them helping the turtles. They might just prove to be another obstacle in the way of my revenge...and that cannot happen..."

Fishface, who had been standing quietly to the back, spoke up. "Would you like us to take care of it?" By 'us' he meant both him and Dogpound, who was standing right next to him.

Shredder gave him a little glare from the corner of his eye. "No. You haven't seen them yet, after all."

Karai perked up. "But I have. Father, if there is anything you wish for me to do..."

Shredder turned around, the spikes of his armor gleaming fatally in the very low lighting of the room. He chuckled slightly before continuing. "Sharp as ever, Karai. Yes, there is something I want you to do."

She looked eager. "Tell me, father. I'll do anything."

"First, confirm that they are not living with the turtles. If they aren't, find out their base, where they live. Second, find out their true agenda. If they are ninja, then they must have their own priorities to take care of as well as their alliances. For this step you may use those two as you wish."

Karai looked back at Fishface and Dogpound, then back at her father with a bow of her head. "I understand, father."

"I will give you further instructions afterwards," Shredder finished, and then dismissed them.

_We'll be back for more, indeed, _Karai thought with a smile on her face. _And I won't be so easily defeated next time!_

* * *

Kei was uneasy as he slept that night. His mind kept wandering to the pictures Tien had taken. Honestly, what would she use them for? Would she show them to Dr. Barlow? _Is she going to say that they are the kidnappers, not the Kraang, just to give him a piece of feasible evidence? _He shook his head; that kind of trick seemed much too low for Tien to commit. Even with her being a bit mischievous and all. First of all, there was the problem of the Doctor claiming it to be Photoshopped. Second, if he believed in it, then he might make the photos public. That would lead to the exploitation of the turtles and...well, there might actually be a zoo exhibit of them with the plaque _Shinobus Turtelus _underneath. What a way to thank them after they went all that way to show them the Kraang base.

That was something Kei didn't want to happen, even though he too was feeling skeptical about using the turtles as help.

So what did Tien want to do? Why did this feel him with some sort of dread?

He'd discussed it with Naku before they went to sleep but...

"I'm sure she has her reasons," the Waterbender had said. "Tien's getting better at being a ninja, but that doesn't mean she's turned into some heartless manipulator."

And when Shii-sensei heard about it, he seemed to have the same indifference. He pretty much repeated Naku's words.

"I have faith in all my students," was the only different thing.

Kei sighed, and rolled over. His mind's eye went back to the camera, to the pictures Tien had taken...

They came back to him suddenly. Red. Red. Red!

Red-mask!

He almost jolted in shock and fell out of his bed.

Either he was remembering, or his mind was playing a trick on him, but...the photos seemed primarily to center on the red-masked turtle. What was his name again? Oh, yes, Raphael. But why would they be about Raphael? His mind searched again, and he came back to the scene of their fight. At some point in time, while Kei was preoccupied with Karai, Tien was fighting the Foot ninja alongside the turtles. She was at a corner, Raphael was at a corner...they slowly came together, and...bumped backs.

_That must be it, _he thought. _That moment when she took the pictures._

And then when they'd gotten away from the TCRI, and stood awhile talking with one another. When they were about to leave, it was Raphael who'd come up to dissuade them; the only other instance Tien could have taken the shots of him.

But why was this bothering him? Why did it fill Kei with such an uneasy feeling? Tien probably didn't mean to take pictures of only Raphael. He was the one that had come into more contact with her during the entire thing. It only made sense he was the primary subject in most of them, since Tien couldn't just pull out her camera and snap shots of all of them as much as she wanted to. She could only take them in brief intervals. Yes, that was it.

_Tien didn't do it on purpose, _he reassured himself. _I mean, why would she? She's practical, despite her stubborn outlook...she doesn't fall in love randomly..._

_Wait. Why am I associating this with romance?_

_Agh! I must be sleep deprived._

And he turned back over, trying to sleep once again. It was difficult at first, but eventually he gave in to it, drifting peacefully off to the world of dreams. There were no turtles or Kraang there, just light and rivers and Konoha. There was the three of them, before they turned fifteen, before they came to New York...

Little did Kei know that he was starting to feel the beginnings of a very, very terrible feeling.

And that small thing that watched him and Tien the other night in the fiasco with the music box could feel it too.

* * *

**_After-story extra._**

The next morning, when Tien was looking through her pictures again...

"WHAT THE FREAK!? WHY IS THAT RED MASKED RAPHAEL IN MOST OF THESE PHOTOS!? GOD-DANGIT, OF ALL THE TURTLES TO TAKE PICTURES OF, IT JUST HAD TO BE THAT FREAK WITH THE ANGER ISSUES!"

And meanwhile, in the turtle lair...

Raphael sneezed violently.

Leonardo, who was passing by, stopped to inquire of his brother's health. "Are you all right?" he asked. "That was one pretty strong sneeze."

Raphael waved him away. "I'm fine! Sheesh, it was just a sneeze."

Leo shrugged. "If you say so."

**_End of extras :)._**


End file.
